FA Porsche, designer of the 911, dies at 76

Page may contain affiliate links. Please see terms for details.

KillerHERTZ

Administrator
Staff member
Joined
May 21, 2003
Messages
19,222
Location
Cambs
Car
SL63 AMG
Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG mourns great designer
Ferdinand Alexander Porsche dies

Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG, Stuttgart, is mourning Professor Ferdinand Alexander Porsche. The Honorary President of the Supervisory Board died on 5 April 2012 in Salzburg, aged 76. Matthias Müller, President and Chief Executive Officer of Porsche AG, paid tribute to Ferdinand Alexander Porsche's services to the sports car manufacturer: "We mourn the death of our partner, Ferdinand Alexander Porsche. As the creator of the Porsche 911, he established a design culture in our company that has shaped our sports cars to this very day. His philosophy of good design is a legacy to us that we will honour for all time."
Ferdinand Alexander Porsche was born in Stuttgart on 11 December 1935, the oldest son of Dorothea and Ferry Porsche. Even his childhood was shaped by cars, and he spent much of his time in the engineering offices and development workshops of his grandfather Ferdinand Porsche. In 1943 the family accompanied the Porsche company's move to Austria, where he went to school in Zell am See. After returning to Stuttgart in 1950, he attended the private Waldorf school. After leaving school, he enrolled at the prestigious Ulm School of Design.
In 1958, F.A. Porsche, as he was known by his colleagues, joined the engineering office of what was then Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche KG. He soon proved his great talent for design by sculpting the first model of a successor to the 356 model line out of plasticine. In 1962 he took over as head of the Porsche design studio, creating a worldwide furore one year later with the Porsche 901 (or 911). With the Porsche 911, F.A. Porsche created a sports car icon whose timeless and classical form survives to this very day in what is now the seventh 911 generation. However, in addition to passenger cars, F.A. Porsche also concerned himself with designing the sports cars of the 1960s. His best-known designs include the Type 804 Formula One racing car or the Porsche 904 Carrera GTS, now considered to be one of the most beautiful racing cars ever.
In the course of the conversion of Porsche KG into a joint-stock corporation in 1971/72, Ferdinand Alexander Porsche, along with all the other family members, stood down from the company's front-line business operations. In 1972 he founded the "Porsche Design Studio" in Stuttgart, the head office of which was relocated to Zell am See in Austria in 1974. In the decades that followed, he designed numerous classic gentlemen's accessories such as watches, spectacles and writing implements that achieved global recognition under the "Porsche Design" brand. In parallel, with his team, he designed a plethora of industrial products, household appliances and consumer durables for internationally renowned clients under the brand "Design by F.A. Porsche". A strong and clear design concept typifies all product designs created in his design studio to date. The credo of his design work was: "Design must be functional and functionality has to be translated visually into aesthetics, without gags that have to be explained first." F.A. Porsche: "A coherently designed product requires no adornment; it should be enhanced by its form alone." The design's appearance should be readily comprehensible and not detract from the product and its function. His conviction was: "Good design should be honest."
Ferdinand Alexander Porsche received numerous honours and awards both for his work as a designer as well as for individual designs. For example, in 1968 the "Comité Internationale de Promotion et de Prestige" honoured him for the outstanding aesthetic design of the Porsche 911 while the Industrial Forum Design Hannover (iF) voted him "Prizewinner of the Year" in 1992. In 1999, the President of Austria bestowed on him the title of Professor.
Ferdinand Alexander Porsche retained a close lifelong association with Porsche AG as a partner and member of the Supervisory Board. For example, even after stepping down from front-line business operations, he contributed to the design of Porsche's sports cars over many decades and repeatedly steered the company in the right di-rection. This was especially the case for the difficult period Porsche experienced at the beginning of the 1990s. From 1990 to 1993, F.A. Porsche served as President of the company's Supervisory Board, thus playing a major role in Porsche A.G's eco-nomic turnaround. In 2005, he stood down from his Supervisory Board role in favour of his son Oliver and assumed the mantle of Honorary President of the Supervisory Board.
Ferdinand Alexander Porsche will be buried in the family grave at Schüttgut in Zell am See, attended by his immediate family. An official funeral service will be held in Stuttgart at a later date.


7139508471740642920.jpg


2051208.003.Mini3L.jpg
 
A legend. My dream car when I was a growing up was a 911 and I was lucky enough to own one for 4 years.
 
A sad loss for all car lovers. The designer of rfe greatest car in the world has gone but is never forgotten.

Yes, he may no longer be with us, but at least his original 1963 design is still being sold in showrooms today virtually unchanged as a continuing tribute to the man who definitively answered the question:

"From an engineering, handling and packaging point of view, where is the worst possible place to put an engine in a car?"
 
Just noticed the sketches on the blackboard behind him. Almost photo-realistic. He certainly capturing the essentialness of the 911 design there.
 
prprandall51 said:
Yes, he may no longer be with us, but at least his original 1963 design is still being sold in showrooms today virtually unchanged as a continuing tribute to the man who definitively answered the question:

"From an engineering, handling and packaging point of view, where is the worst possible place to put an engine in a car?"

Although factually correct the evolution of the flawed design has lead to arguably the best handling cars in the world so how flawed is it really?
 
acej said:
Although factually correct the evolution of the flawed design has lead to arguably the best handling cars in the world so how flawed is it really?

It's a unique car and one I'd love to drive and own.
 
Wonder what he thought about the VW takeover debacle which ended up with Porsche being effectively controlled by VW. :dk: Porsche - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Nothing personal but there's a lot of corporate "murky waters" in the company's history not least its early association with the Third Reich. Was the 911 a flawed design- undoubtedly-- witness the large number of owners the early cars managed to kill. Its success was to largely overcome the penalty of the flawed weight distribution inherent in its design . The cars are beautifully built but not always bullet proof witness the early problems with cylinder liners on the first water cooled flat sixes. What you have to admire is the engineering excellence- and perhaps also the excentricity [ some might say the shrewd marketing nouse :rolleyes:] to stick with an iconic design- not enough of that in today's car designs. :doh: You will have gathered by now I haven't bought into the 911's iconic status but still have an admiration for the man who designed it. :thumb:
 
He certainly styled an iconic car but I'd have to say he can take little credit for the chassis. His granddad nicked that from Skoda with his mate Adolf! Not his fault obviously R.I.P.
 
Just noticed the sketches on the blackboard behind him. Almost photo-realistic. He certainly capturing the essentialness of the 911 design there.

What blackboard? All I see is a display case with models in.
 
acej said:
A legend. My dream car when I was a growing up was a 911 and I was lucky enough to own one for 4 years.

I fully agree with you. It was my distance dream as a kid and for the last 3+ years I have owned a 911(997) and every time I drive it it put a big smile in my face. A fantastic car but also unique on how it does things

Theo
 
sad loss , I have a bit of his legacy parked in the garage though...
BB5A7A70.jpg
 
Dear All,

rear engine rear wheel drive is not the disaster that many said it was.
Porsche 356
Porsche 911
V W's various
Renault Alpine A 110 and its cousins ending up as A 610
Hillman Imp and its cousins
Ginetta G 15
Davrians up to Mk 8
Clan Crusaders
Renault Dauphine, Floride, Carravelle, R 8 and R 10
Simca's various
FIAT's various.
FIAT Abarths with 110 bhp per litre
Skoda various
Tatra various.
Chevrolet Corvair Monza after they added anti roll bar

many of the above had amazing racing careers and long lives in manufacture. They had all kinds of engines too. In Line 2 and 4 cylinders. Flat 4 and 6's. V 8's and V 6's. Turbo and non turbo. Several had approaching 100 hp per litre in the late 60's early 70's. Certainly the Ginetta G 15 with a full house 998 or 1040 was getting nearly 100 bhp per l. Look at FIAT Abarths and what Carlo Abarth was doing in the racing world, and the same with Simca's.
So might i suggest that rear engine rear wheel drive has produced some of the most amazing cars and race cars .

regards David
 
RIP Professor Porsche!

In my opinion the (997) 911 is the most complete and fun car I've ever had the pleasure of using. :)

bpsorrel-albums-bpsorrel-s-cars-picture2510-911-carrera-me.jpg
 
Dear All,

rear engine rear wheel drive is not the disaster that many said it was.
Porsche 356
Porsche 911
V W's various
Renault Alpine A 110 and its cousins ending up as A 610
Hillman Imp and its cousins
Ginetta G 15
Davrians up to Mk 8
Clan Crusaders
Renault Dauphine, Floride, Carravelle, R 8 and R 10
Simca's various
FIAT's various.
FIAT Abarths with 110 bhp per litre
Skoda various
Tatra various.
Chevrolet Corvair Monza after they added anti roll bar

many of the above had amazing racing careers and long lives in manufacture. They had all kinds of engines too. In Line 2 and 4 cylinders. Flat 4 and 6's. V 8's and V 6's. Turbo and non turbo. Several had approaching 100 hp per litre in the late 60's early 70's. Certainly the Ginetta G 15 with a full house 998 or 1040 was getting nearly 100 bhp per l. Look at FIAT Abarths and what Carlo Abarth was doing in the racing world, and the same with Simca's.
So might i suggest that rear engine rear wheel drive has produced some of the most amazing cars and race cars .

regards David

That may be true on the circuit, but they can be tricky on the road. I should know:
 

Attachments

  • DSCN0955.jpg
    DSCN0955.jpg
    246.8 KB · Views: 17

Users who are viewing this thread

Back
Top Bottom